Bryan Beller's basses stolen!

[sotua]

BB's basses were stolen from his storage unit in the US while he was touring abroad.



(Not sure if this is the right forum - mods, please move or repost in the proper forum).

 

[rufus.K]

Who is brIan beller?

 

[FloridaSam]

Brian Beller is a Manhattan Real Estate lawyer.

Bryan Beller is Joe Satriani's thumpy thumpy guy who had his gear stolen.

Brlan Beller? You got me there.

 

[ERicks]

Man this is terrible...I just saw him with Beer For Dolphins two months or so ago...anyone who's followed him for a while knows the story behind that red Lull. Hope he is able to get them back!

 

[Watchootognbout]

Who is brIan beller?

Brian Beller.Bryan Beller - Wikipedia
Bass player for Joe Satriani,Steve Vai,Dethlok,Mike Kinnealy and Beer For Dolphins and The Aristocrats.
Former Bass Player Magazine editor.

 

[sotua]

If someone stole my #1 I'd be devastated. And it's just a run of the mill jazz that I have since 16 years ago or so.

 

[macribas]

Full text:

THEFT ALERT: I'm sorry to report that most of my basses were stolen from my storage unit while I was on tour in South America these past six weeks. I'm hoping you can help me possibly recover them by sharing this post, in which I'll list every bit of info I have on the missing items. They include FIVE (edited-BB) Mike Lull basses:

* Mike Lull Modern 5-string, Red (yes, THAT one, my #1 for 17 years), flame maple top, s/n 266
* Mike Lull Modern 5-string, Brown, fretless, flame maple top, s/n 448
* Mike Lull T-Bass 4-string (the Dethklok bass), black w/white pick guard and black "gear" sticker, no serial number (blank indent in headstock)
* Mike Lull jazz bass 4-string, passive, black w/white pick guard, s/n 513
* (edit - BB) Mike Lull prototype 5-string, translucent black finish, s/n TBA (will get soon)

and these other special items:

* Taylor AB-4 acoustic/electric bass, sunburst, s/n 20010214201

and very sadly:

* Fender P-Bass, sunburst w/white pickguard, s/n unknown - it once belonged to my dear friend Wes Wehmiller

I also am missing an SWR Mo' Bass head, s/n ending in 0002 (the second ever made), and a couple of other items

* Voodoo Labs Amp Selector
* SansAmp PSA-1 Programmable Preamp
* ART Tube Pac Mic Preamp

I am including some pictures of me playing the instruments above. I don't have any pics of me playing that black 4-string Mike Lull jazz bass, but everything else has been around.

The items were located at

Public Storage
18650 Vía Princessa
Canyon Country, CA 91387 USA

(It's a long and winding story as to why there were there, involving international shipping snafus and forest fires and crazy touring schedules.)

They were stolen sometime between November 9 and December 27. I have done a quick search on eBay, Craig's List, and Reverb.com, but I don't see anything. Obviously some of these instruments are very recognizable, but I'm just one person. The power of social media far exceeds anything I could do on my own. If you could be so kind as to share this post with anyone you think could help locate one of these instruments (even if you don't live in the United States; it's possible that these are already headed overseas), I would be most grateful. If you don't feel comfortable making public comments, you can always message me. I will also gladly accept anonymous tips if that feels appropriate.

This is my second time around this particular rodeo. My first was in 1994, when someone stole my 1986 pre-Gibson Tobias out of my North Hollywood apartment. That was my #1 bass at the time. So I get that these are just things, and no one got hurt, and life goes on. That said, if anyone out there can somehow help me locate these items - especially the Red Mike Lull 5-string and the Fender P-Bass - I would be very very thankful.

Be good to each other out there, ok?

BB

 

[Daveypoo]

Not sure if we're in the right place here - admins feel free to move this as needed.

Bryan had a number of basses stolen while on tour, notably his #1 Mike Lull:

THEFT ALERT: I'm sorry to report that most of my basses were stolen from my storage unit while I was on tour in South America these past six weeks. I'm hoping you can help me possibly recover them by sharing this post, in which I'll list every bit of info I have on the missing items. They include FIVE (edited-BB) Mike Lull basses:

* Mike Lull Modern 5-string, Red (yes, THAT one, my #1 for 17 years), flame maple top, s/n 266
* Mike Lull Modern 5-string, Brown, fretless, flame maple top, s/n 448
* Mike Lull T-Bass 4-string (the Dethklok bass), black w/white pick guard and black "gear" sticker, no serial number (blank indent in headstock)
* Mike Lull jazz bass 4-string, passive, black w/white pick guard, s/n 513
* (edit - BB) Mike Lull prototype 5-string, translucent black finish, s/n TBA (will get soon)

and these other special items:

* Taylor AB-4 acoustic/electric bass, sunburst, s/n 20010214201

and very sadly:

* Fender P-Bass, sunburst w/white pickguard, s/n unknown - it once belonged to my dear friend Wes Wehmiller

I also am missing an SWR Mo' Bass head, s/n ending in 0002 (the second ever made), and a couple of other items

* Voodoo Labs Amp Selector
* SansAmp PSA-1 Programmable Preamp
* ART Tube Pac Mic Preamp

I am including some pictures of me playing the instruments above. I don't have any pics of me playing that black 4-string Mike Lull jazz bass, but everything else has been around.

The items were located at

Public Storage
18650 Vía Princessa
Canyon Country, CA 91387 USA

(It's a long and winding story as to why there were there, involving international shipping snafus and forest fires and crazy touring schedules.)

They were stolen sometime between November 9 and December 27. I have done a quick search on eBay, Craig's List, and Link Removed, but I don't see anything. Obviously some of these instruments are very recognizable, but I'm just one person. The power of social media far exceeds anything I could do on my own. If you could be so kind as to share this post with anyone you think could help locate one of these instruments (even if you don't live in the United States; it's possible that these are already headed overseas), I would be most grateful. If you don't feel comfortable making public comments, you can always message me. I will also gladly accept anonymous tips if that feels appropriate.

This is my second time around this particular rodeo. My first was in 1994, when someone stole my 1986 pre-Gibson Tobias out of my North Hollywood apartment. That was my #1 bass at the time. So I get that these are just things, and no one got hurt, and life goes on. That said, if anyone out there can somehow help me locate these items - especially the Red Mike Lull 5-string and the Fender P-Bass - I would be very very thankful.

Be good to each other out there, ok?

BB

 

[MrLenny1]

Bummer man. Pretty low when you are stealing from
a musician.
GLW any recovery.

 

[audreycashin]

Keep an eye out peeps! This sucks!

 

[two fingers]

Man, I hate a thief.

 

[tylerwylie]

He's a great hardworking guy, hate to see this happen. Hope the thieves get their due and he gets his gear back in the same condition as when he put it in storage.

 

[Munjibunga]

Bump.

 

[Feral Feline]

It's a great story, possibly even better than the Taco Stingray, though this thread isn't moving nearly as fast as the one for the Taco Stingray did and is not much fun. Wishing Beller well, may he recover his basses as quickly as possible.

Read Bryan's own account here of his "Storage Wars". Not only is he a talented and entertaining performer, so too can be repeated of his writing.

 

[bottomzone]

That is really messed up and there is nothing funny about it! I know what it feels like to have some stuff stolen that included a bass. I was very blessed to get the bass back. I'll be on the lookout Bryan.

 

[BadJazz]

It's a great story, possibly even better than the Taco Stingray, though this thread isn't moving nearly as fast as the one for the Taco Stingray did and is not much fun. Wishing Beller well, may he recover his basses as quickly as possible.

Read Bryan's own account here of his "Storage Wars". Not only is he a talented and entertaining performer, so too can be repeated of his writing.

View attachment 1021887

The Storage Wars link is a must-read. tl;dr: As of the last update, two thieves have been arrested in association with the storage unit break-in. Further investigation is on-going.

 

[Arizona Jones]

Heck of a story, wish the best for the guy. I like his tenacity.

 

[BurnOut]

Just read the story, incredible detective work. I'm glad he got a lead, sorry it didn't have the full happy ending we all wanted for him. Hope things keep improving for Bryan. Some rare birds out there hope they show up.

 

[Daveypoo]

From FB:

SEEKING VOLUNTEERS FOR...
OPERATION "CHECK OR CALL EVERY PAWN SHOP IN LOS ANGELES". (picture explanation below!) --- Some very kind folks have volunteered to help find my missing basses, and I feel I owe them a decent plan to do so. This idea was devised by my new friend Tom Klein. Mission: To efficiently divide the job of checking 70+ pawn shops (by phone or in person) in the L.A. area without duplicating any work or bombarding the shops with repeat calls or visits. Tom has offered to essentially be a dispatcher here - he'll parcel out the work to those who volunteer. They can report back to him and he'll manage the database on a spreadsheet. Thank you Tom Klein!

It's simple. Just contact Tom here: https://www.facebook.com/tom.klein.984
or here: [email protected]

(The link to all the pawn shops is at the bottom of this post.)

Tell him you're interested in being on Team NLFTFB. He'll give you a few shops to check. You can check by phone (this will be most of you) or, if you're close by, even in person. If you check by phone, I would start by asking if they have any bass guitars. Then, if they say yes, proceed to ask about the Mike Lull brand. Appear as if you're interested in a purchase, not solving a crime. If you get a hit, report back to Tom and I asap and don't go public with it (I mean, this is public enough, let's face it). Even if you don't, it's important to report back to him so he can mark the data down on his list.

I have had to face the fact that, even at my most manically obsessed, I can't keep up with all of the aspects of what's going on here and still deal with regular life. I'm trying to find balance, difficult as that is. I know many of you out there have had to do all of that without the help of a large social media following, and I truly empathize with your plight. I don't know if I'll get all of these items back, but I'm certainly going to try, and maybe, just maybe, it'll be a win for all of us who've been through this.

Thank you yet again,
BB

P.S. P.P.S. The pawn shop list link:
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As for the pictures, they're outtakes from a Glen LaFerman photo shoot from 2011. In the shot with my Mike Lull Red #1, we decided to re-enact the Johnny Cash shot, just for kicks. And while it's not exactly keeping in the "positive energy" spirit of this whole campaign, sometimes you just gotta blow off a little steam.

;-)

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